


Hold It Close And Keep It Here

by sixflagstexas



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Belly Kink, Multi, Polyamory, Weight Gain
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-04
Updated: 2019-11-04
Packaged: 2021-01-22 21:23:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,893
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21308830
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sixflagstexas/pseuds/sixflagstexas
Summary: Post S3 finale. Jace comes to live with Alec and Magnus. It goes well!
Relationships: Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood, Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood/Jace Wayland
Comments: 5
Kudos: 77





	Hold It Close And Keep It Here

In the end, Alec and Jace are back together. It’s Isabelle’s signature on the transfer order but it's Magnus’s idea originally, and no transfers can happen in the Clave without Alec’s stamp of approval.

Magnus is affronted when Alec mentions a few potential quarters for Jace in Alicante, and promptly conjures his old room back into existence. Jace didn't react when Izzy gave him his transfer order, and now he’s standing just as stoically in Alec’s living room, looking out over the Citadel.

Simon had been reluctant to tell him that Jace spoke to Clary, that she remembered him. He didn’t want to betray Jace’s trust but Magnus had dropped his martini glass with a gasp and laid a heavy hand on Simon’s shoulder.

“Clary can’t just go around getting her memory erased and restored and erased and restored again,” Magnus said with a flourish of his hand, “bits and pieces of her can be lost in the process.”

Alec has been talking about creating a strike team for a few months, and rebuilding Alicante is almost complete, and it just makes sense to bring Jace out. Get him out of New York City, get their best warrior on the task force, close the four thousand mile distance between them.

Of course Alec’s been feeling the throbs of sadness and the pangs of longing through their parabatai bond, but he’s polite enough not to mention it. 

Jace has his arms wrapped around his body, and he looks small in the doorway. He’ll let Alec know when he wants to talk, but he can’t just stare off into the distance until he comes around. Not even Jace is capable of brooding on the level. 

“Dinner should almost be ready,” Alec says, and he fights down feeling anxious for mentioning eating like half an hour into Jace living with them. But in Alec’s defense, he hasn’t eaten since lunch and he’s grown pretty accustomed to regular meals since becoming the Inquisitor and moving to Idris. 

That stirs Jace but when he turns around, he's saying, “I don’t know if I’m hungry,” even though Alec is sure he hasn’t eaten all day - he can feel the hollow hunger radiating through their bond.

“Magnus made pasta,” Alec says. It’s kind of a dirty move, Jace loves pasta, but it works. Jace follows Alec into the dining room. 

Magnus loves to impress so there’s not only a steaming bowl of fat fettuccine noodles on the table covered in a thick white sauce. There are big slices of garlic bread, a giant bowl of salad, and a huge chocolate cake. There are three places set at the end of their long dining table closest to the fire. It looks extravagant, with sparkling wine and burning candles. 

And the worst part is, this is Magnus honoring Alec’s request to tone it down for dinner tonight. 

Magnus has never been particularly discreet about his appreciation for larger lovers, and in the past year of marriage that might have started to show on Alec. 

He sits between his husband and his parabatai and takes a generous helping of pasta and a couple of slices of bread.

It turns out Jace probably hasn’t eaten all day, at least, because he matches Alec’s first serving, his second serving and goes in for a third.

Alec has thickened slightly all over, blurring the lines of his muscles and softening the cut of his jaw. He trains four times a week but it’s no match for his appetite these days. It's hard to mind, especially with the way Magnus reacts to the changes. 

And with the way Magnus is trying so hard to look innocent as he carves out giant slabs of cake. 

Alec’s stomach feels stretched out and blissful, and something deep inside of his soul quiets. He can't keep the stuffed, slow calm from suffusing through his parabatai bond. Alec never really learned how to filter positive emotions. He never really needed to. 

It's hard to tell but he thinks he can feel something similar bouncing back from Jace, too. Alec sneaks a look at him. 

Leaning back in his chair, Jace is illuminated gold by the fire. He smiles a little when Magnus tells him his room is exactly where it used to be, just how he left it. 

Later, once they're in bed, Magnus splays strong hands across Alec’s stomach. It's softening more than it's growing and Magnus hums in delight as his hands sink into the little bit of pudge there. The feeling of the cool silk sheets and Magnus’s hot hands almost undoes him before the real action begins. 

His mind, however, keeps thinking about Jace who must be at least as stuffed as he is and is alone in his own room.

***

During high summer Magnus serves most meals outside on the terrace, but October is right around the corner. It's getting cool in the mornings and evenings, too cool for a leisurely breakfast in the sun, and when Alec shuffles out of the bedroom he discovers Magnus has coffee and pastries set up in the living room. 

Magnus is in his pajamas, sipping from a coffee mug while he browses through a magazine. He brightens when he sees Alec and tugs him onto the couch with a smooth, “Alexander, sweetheart, good morning.”

There's a veritable mountain of pastries, of every imaginable variety. Alec isn't always so good with remembering the names of the crazy stuff Magnus feeds him, but there are like four different kinds of pastry triangles on the table right now, to say nothing of the other geometric shapes. 

“I'm not sure what Jace likes,” Magnus says while he prepares Alec's coffee for him, by hand. 

“Jace will eat anything,” Alec says around a blueberry scone. He eyes up the baklava, and wonders if Jace’s apparent willingness to eat his mother's questionable family recipes growing up had more to do with wanting to be accepted than an affinity for oxtail stew. 

Magnus makes the face he makes when he's being asked to settle for anything besides the goofy, extravagant plan he has going on in his head, and it looks kind of like a pout frown. “I want to know what he likes,” Magnus says. 

Alec is finishing up an apple turnover when Jace pads his way into the living room in sweat pants and stocking feet. 

Sitting next to the mountain of pastry, Alec feels some brief nerves tingle through his veins. It's one thing for Alec to be thickening up, but it's another thing entirely to basically display for Jace how exactly he's thickening up, like some three-act play starring himself and carbohydrates. 

But Jace doesn't grill him about his weight or his proximity to a metric fuck ton of pastries. He just grabs a donut off the pile and accidentally walks into a discussion with Magnus about the acceptability of black coffee. It's Magnus’s firmly held opinion that there’s no point in punishing oneself with black coffee. 

Jace accepts his mug of black coffee looking chagrined, and grabs another donut as the discussion shifts to their plans for the day. 

Alec has an endless to-do list but, as is usually the case with management, most of his actual tasks involve delegating responsibilities and checking in on those delegations. Magnus has various appointments all day and is going to miss the Downworlders meeting at Taki’s at noon. “You're coming, though, right?” Alec asks Jace, as if they both aren't completely aware that Jace is free all day long.

“Ugh. Do I have to?” Jace asks, but Alec catches him share an amused look with Magnus. And it's not that Alec is scared of Maia. He respects her a lot, actually. She just clearly has No Time for Alec, and he's hoping bringing Jace around might soften her up.

So in short, “Yes, you have to go.” Alec is fully prepared to play the Inquisitor card if he has to, but Jace says he would be delighted to go and gives Alec his most charming smile, which has never stopped making Alec weak in the knees. 

For a moment, Alec regrets his focus on breakfast triangles. He looks mournfully at the donuts and danishes and the lemon squares Magnus insists on serving for breakfast because “they're fruit”. 

Magnus never pushes food on him, not in so many words. He just provides nearly infinite amounts of whatever food Alec can imagine, and sits back to watch. Alec isn't even sure if Magnus is aware of the direct correlation between how much Alec eats and how pleased he looks. 

He looks happy enough right now, with Alec four pastries in. Over time Alec has come to realize that it's less of a quantitative thing and more of a needs-being-met thing. Magnus says he can't stand the thought of Alec wanting more and not being able to have any, of being left wanting. 

And so Alec tries to tell himself he's not in want of anything right now. He's had four pastries since waking up an hour ago. He wants a Danish, Magnus portals them in from a shop in Denmark he's been patronizing since the 1800s, but he feels that increasingly familiar prickle of nerves thinking that Jace might be watching him, keeping count. 

So he heads out to work. It's a blessedly short journey - there is a permanent portal leading from their apartment to his office in the Citadel. 

Work is slow to start. He's got calls to make and paperwork to get started on but his brain is back at home, caught up somewhere between pastries and Jace and how maybe there are parts of this they didn't think through when they agreed that Jace should come stay with them. His brain keeps looping back to glazed cherries and cream cheese filling, though, because his thoughts about Jace are a little hard to process. 

He's been at work for twenty minutes when, with a little puff of smoke, a couple of danishes on a plate appear on his desk. There's a card along with them in Magnus’ neat script that says, “Mrs. Johanssen’s great grandmother didn't risk her life to save this recipe from the Great Fire of 1942 just for you to be too embarrassed to have some.”

And by the time the danishes are done he's got a pile of completed paperwork ready to be sent out and two conference calls in the bag. 

***

Magnus meets them at home to portal them to the city before jetting off to meet a new warlock in Idris. It's warmer in New York, and humid. Alec breathes in the salty air at the docks and follows Jace into Taki’s. 

Simon is there already, sitting with Maia at a big booth in the back. Jace and Alec slide into the opposite side. 

“Meliorn texted, he should be here any minute,” Simon tells them. 

That's fine. Diplomatic relations are a lot less tense when there isn't an apocalypse actively going on, and lately these meetings have been more about keeping an open line of communication than anything else.

Simon flags Bat down for what is at least his second pint of blood. Isabelle is frequently seen whispering in the corner with Magnus at most social events, and Alec is starting to wonder if they have something particular in common. Simon is looking… thick. 

But while Bat’s at the table Alec puts in an order for a cheeseburger and fries, and Jace pipes up and says he'll have the same and that they'll both have Cokes. 

Meliorn arrives shortly after Bat leaves with their order and Maia shouts his order of guppies over a bed of water lilies to the back. 

They've discussed the handful of recent demon attacks and a vampire den Simon had to shut down before the food comes, and by the time Bat is placing their order on the table they've pretty much moved on to catching up on friend group gossip. 

Alec continues to attend regional meetings as the Inquisitor because the burgers here are thick and pink in the middle, stacked two high and dripping with cheese. Maia makes her own buns that are toasted and sprinkled with heritage sesame seeds from a farm in upstate New York. The fries are thick cut and piled high, and the plates are large ovals because her usual clientele consists of literal werewolves and Alec loves it. 

He makes short work of his burger and fries, and can't help but notice that Jace keeps up. His Constant Jace Awareness spans all things, but now seems to include how Jace's consumption compares to his own. 

When the meeting is over Alec is full but not too full or anything, which is probably good because he has nothing but construction proposal meetings scheduled all afternoon. It'll be after five before he makes it home for dinner. 

He and Jace portal back home. Alec has a couple of minutes before the first proposal is supposed to begin and his office is just a portal away. 

It's an unusual feeling to be unsure of what to say to Jace. Everything he feels is broadcast to Jace through their parabatai bond, but without the context of his thoughts. Jace might need time to come around but Alec needs to make sure he knows something. 

“I’m happy you're here,” Alec says, and barrels on before he can lose his nerve for emotional honesty, “I’m sorry it had to be-” and he has no words for because your girlfriend has had too many memory wipes but presses on anyway, “I’m just glad to be on the same continent as you.”

Jace doesn't respond right away. Alec can feel him processing. He's got something along the lines of enough time before his first meeting to wait Jace out and finally, after a couple moments of silence, Jace turns around and wraps him up in a hug. 

There's no conversation to be had. Jace pours it all out through their bond, the despair and anger and the staggering guilt and Alec squeezes him tighter, feels his eyes watering from the sting of Jace's emotions. 

They stay wrapped up like that until Jace pulls away, and kindly ignore each other's misty eyes. 

“I love you, man.” Alec tells him as he heads to the portal and Jace gives him something damn close to a genuine smile. 

“I love you too, dude.” Jace says, and then, “Do you think there's any coq au vin leftover from last night?”

***

Alec has been sparring with Jace for years, can feel Jace's next move as easily as he feels his own. 

Since he moved to Idris he's seen Jace at least once a week, between Clave business and family dinners and portalling back to New York to drink at the Hunter’s Moon because he doesn't like any of the bars in Alicante. 

But this is the first time they've sparred since Alec moved out here, since he started gaining weight. Usually, Alec doesn't think twice about the extra weight. 

But as he and Jace circle each other in the training room he can't help but wonder if Jace can see how his biceps and chest have a subtle layer of softness, how his hips are softening. 

Well. Anyone can see it. Does Jace notice? 

Alec dodges the first swing, doesn't have to see it coming to dodge the second, and smirks at Jace, “You're going to have to do better than that.”

Jace grins brilliantly before taking another shot. Distracted by the butterflies in his stomach Alec barely dodges the next strike that comes his way. 

Jace looks smug, but Alec only lets him revel in it for a moment before he shifts his stance and goes on the defense. Jace deflects his blow but stumbles, and it occurs to them at the same time that Alec has some weight on Jace. 

Alec dodges the next two swings but the one after that lands solidly on his midsection. He's completely unmoved and catches Jace off guard with his next swing, knocking him back a few steps. 

And okay, yes. Alec doesn't quite look the same as he used to but he still trains most days out of the week. It's just that he's been eating enough to get chunky anyways. 

Sweeping his sweaty fringe out of his eyes, Jace pants, “And here I thought you'd gotten soft,” and Alec’s heart simultaneously floods with warmth and constricts with anxiety. 

Alec can tell from his shit eating grin that he's mostly joking, and also trying to get Alec agitated enough to make a mistake. 

And it's not that Alec is agitated. He's just still processing Jace thinking he's soft. Of all the goddamn ways to describe it. 

He's still thinking about it when Jace kicks one of his legs out and takes him down. Jace has a knee in his back but with some momentum he rolls them over. 

The notches in Jace's spine have been getting less visible by the day, but Alec still has a measurable amount of weight on him. 

Once he's on top of Jace, there's no chance of Jace being able to move him off, not with how Alec has him pinned. Once Jace taps out Alec rolls off and flops onto his back, panting. 

“I guess it's been awhile since the last time we did that,” Jace says. 

“Sure,” Alec snorts, “You think that's the reason I kicked your ass?”

Alec grabs his towel from the corner of the room, and catches sight of the time on his phone in the process. 

“Shit, Jace-” but Jace is already right next to him, gathering his things to leave. 

He follows Jace through the stone corridors from the training room to his office, through the portal in his office to home. They’re under strict instructions to be home before five, but they’re cutting it close and Alec doubts Magnus will be pleased they’re still in training clothes.

It’s five o’clock on the dot when they scoot into the dining room. Magnus tuts at them, but stops fussing over the table to greet them.  
“Well look what the cat dragged in,” Magnus says with a grin, “Now go wash up for dinner.”

With a roll of his eyes, Jace heads to freshen up but Alec hangs back for a moment, hoping to snag a kiss. 

Magnus fiddles with a centerpiece on the table until Jace is out of earshot. “If Jace keeps trying to keep up with you, he's gonna start filling out, too.” 

It's a little weird to hear Magnus saying that. Jace's appetite has not escaped Alec's notice and he feels bad every time he notices when Jace refills his plate, every time he thinks about it. He feels bad for watching Jace like Magnus watches him. 

Alec tries not to let the silence stretch on but there's another prickle further down in his soul. Jace is one of those people who is effortlessly good at anything they try, and Alec isn't exactly thrilled at the idea of Jace one-upping him at one more thing, especially This Thing. 

Gaining weight, despite ostensibly being for Magnus, is on the short list of things Alec has done in his life solely because he enjoys doing it. 

Magnus must be able to read into the silence, or sense the mounting panic coming off him in waves, because he reaches out and pulls Alec close, and kisses him deeply. 

Alec's life is a whole lot of judgement calls, blind faith predictions, and waiting to see if something will go wrong. Few things feel as right as when he's in Magnus's arms. 

By the end of the embrace both of Magnus's hands have found their way to his hips and he gives an affectionate little squeeze to the softness there. “Alexander, I hope you know that you are the apple of my eye. The sweet peach in my dumpling. The sugar in my sugar plums.”

Alec scrunches up his nose, laughs despite himself, “What exactly is a sugar plum?”

“What I would be wooing you with in the 16th century,” Magnus tells him breezily, “But instead I’ll have to woo you with braised duck and dumplings.” Magnus plants a quick smooch on his nose before wandering off to finish setting up dinner. 

Jace and Magnus are already seated when Alec is done washing up, and laughing over something that they suddenly need to stop talking about when they see Alec approach. 

It would bother him, but Jace and Magnus tend to team up on him about things that are totally defensible, like preferring to be in bed before 10 PM, or preferring to watch the credits when they watch a movie, so they can stuff it. 

But also it's nice to see them bonding like that. The little bit of Alec's soul that was itching earlier is quiet now. He loads up his plate with some duck and a half dozen dumplings to start and all is right in his world.

***

It's kind of surprising when his mom invites them all to Thanksgiving dinner. Not only is she participating in a mundane holiday, but she's hosting it at Luke’s farm and somehow figured out the mundane postal service to mail everyone paper invitations. 

They portal there a couple hours early so Magnus can help Maryse set up. He looks stunning as usual, sharp figure wrapped in aubergine silk, eyes lined with kohl. 

His mom fawns over all of them with misty eyes, like she doesn't see them every couple of weeks for family dinners. 

She hugs them each individually but hangs on to Jace for the longest. When she pulls back she holds him by the cheeks and looks at him for a long moment before asking, “Are Alec and Magnus taking care of you?”

It's a preposterous question. Not only are they all in twenties at least but after over two months of living with them, there's just the barest hint of an outline of Jace's stomach pushing against his henley. 

“Of course they are,” Jace grins and she finally lets him go. She shows Magnus into the kitchen and Alec and Jace are left to explore. 

They find Max watching football with Luke and Simon in the living room. Alec has been taking great pains to avoid pulling strings to check up on Max but as soon as they sit down on the couch he kind of can't help the flood of questions that pour out. 

Jace joins in, and within twenty minutes they've heard about Max’s preferred weapons, first solo demon take down, and the kid in his squad that keeps beating him at sparring. 

“You need to drop your shoulder, lower your center of gravity,” Jace says, and Luke chimes in with something about patience and humility usually being the right answer. 

Alec has the vague realization that Luke is probably going to end up being Max's stepdad, and also probably a super good influence. 

Isabelle pops in from the kitchen to refresh Simon's glass of blood, and sets a giant platter of hors d'oeuvres down on the coffee table. Anyone besides a Shadowhunter might have struggled to carry the tray out one-handed. The volume and variety of treats can only be Magnus’s handiwork, but pigs in a blanket and cheese puffs are not his usual MO. 

Alec can't help but smile. Only Maryse Lightwood can micromanage a centuries-old Warlock.

They’ve made a solid dent in the tray when Magnus swans out of the kitchen with blood for Simon, soda for Max, and cocktails for the adults.

Alec watches Magnus’s eyes land on him, watches his eyes go dark. Some of the newest weight has been starting to collect around his waist, starting to pooch out a little, and it’s been driving Maguns to constant distraction.

Everything is ready shortly after that, and they troop into the dining room and take their seats at the long wooden table. Alec sits between Jace and Magnus and is first in the line of fire when Magnus starts passing magically filled cups of mulled wine around. 

Magnus and his mom put on a good spread, though. It’s surprisingly traditional Thanksgiving fare for two people who don’t usually celebrate mundane holidays. There’s a huge golden turkey on a fancy bed of greens, stuffing, baskets full of big dinner rolls, and there are a few casserole dishes on the table full of things Alec doesn’t recognize. 

His mom insists he try all of it and heaps his plate with a marshmallowy goo she claims is sweet potatoes and something with green beans that is pretty clearly pretending to be vegetables. He grabs some stuffing and mashed potatoes and turkey and Isabelle makes him try some weird cranberry thing she made. As usual, there is no actual room on his plate for bread so he just plops the rolls on top of everything else.

His mom talks about her bookstore and the pretzel vendor that keeps parking on the sidewalk out front.

Maryse says, “There are dozens of mundane laws about that kind of stuff,” she’s saying, “I reported him to the city!” She's not beaming but she's not far off. 

Alec he goes in for seconds immediately. The orange goop is still suspicious but it's also Alec's new favorite thing on the planet. The stuffing is herby with crunchy bits on top, and these are Magnus's mashed potatoes which means they're loaded with butter and cream. 

He's hyper aware of Jace next to him also taking his second helping, matching Alec's third helping as well. 

Alec is not in the business of hiding the fact that he's gaining weight from his friends and family. He's married, the Inquisitor, and inching closer to 30 every day, Alec is allowed to get fat if he wants to. 

And it's not like magically tailored clothes in his exact size offer any room to hide anyways.

So he's never really been in the business of hiding his growing appetite, either, but hesitates before going for a fourth plate. 

And Alec is getting full, but he's pretty sure an integral part of Thanksgiving is pie so he wants to have enough room to try as many different kinds as Magnus insists on conjuring.

But seeing Jace load up his fourth plate makes Alec hungry somewhere deep inside. Jace eats like there's nothing else he should be doing besides shoving his fourth blessed helping of stuffing into his mouth. 

Jace laughs at something Izzy says and that thousand watt grin just gets more and more devastating the fuller his cheeks get. 

The part deep down inside Alec that worries Magnus will be attracted to Jace is largely informed by the part of himself that is blindingly attracted to Jace. And it's not like his obsession with Jace growing up - his feelings for Jace come from somewhere near his feelings for Magnus, and all of those feelings live down the block from the way he feels after eating a whole pizza by himself. 

Magnus insists on conjuring three kinds of pie: apple, pecan, and pumpkin. 

Alec starts with pumpkin, scowls when Magnus cuts him a hefty slice, but loves the spice and the texture and makes a mental note to ask for pumpkin things more often. 

Jace “One Of Each” Herrondale beside him, however, asks for a slice of each right off the bat and Maryse must have attended the Magnus Bane Academy of Cutting Pies because she serves him three giant slices and then says, “Magnus made ice cream, too.”

Alec manages a slice of apple while he tries not to watch Jace work his way through all of that pie. 

Across the table from them, Simon also looks stuffed and ready to fall asleep where he's sitting in his chair. Izzy is next to him, and she smiles at Alec when they lock eyes. 

Max is in the kitchen with Magnus, showing him something out of his history textbooks that's making Magnus cackle. Mom and Luke are “taking out the trash” AKA “probably making out on the back porch or something”. 

Alec manages to finish his pie while Jace is still working through his, distracted by a story Isabelle is telling him about a Seelie hair salon she started going to in Midtown. 

He knows as soon as Jace finishes without even having to look over at him because that wonderful full feeling flows through his body so strongly he can't separate his feelings from Jace's. 

Alec loves to be this full, this taken care of, and knowing Jace is just as full and content makes Alec's heart swell and he feels a woosh of happiness run through their bond only to be reflected right back from Jace. 

He's not sure he can get any happier when Magnus comes in from the kitchen and spots him, likely spots them. He cleans the whole dining room with a flick of his hand. 

Magnus settles his other hand on Alec's shoulder and the breathless giddy feeling of bright happiness in Alec's heart settles into something warm and beautiful and deep and he lets his cheek rest of Magnus's hand, ignoring the way the rings press into his skin. 

Magnus must make some kind of eye contact with Izzy because Alec watches her face shift from neutral to the devious expression that Magnus always seems to be able to pull out of her. 

“Well, I had best get my boys home,” Magnus says and Izzy’s smile goes warm again, eyes moving between the three of them. 

In an instant they're back home, and when Jace excuses himself to his room Alec is equal parts sad to see him go and excited to finally be able to get Magnus's hands on his swollen stomach. 

Magnus praises him endlessly as soon as they pass through their bedroom door. He pulls off Alec's sweater and undoes his belt buckle and pants, all the while telling Alec he's so good, such a good boy, you ate so much baby, you did such a good job. 

This isn't too new for them. A lot of the time Alec is too stuffed to be spectacularly helpful when they have sex, and he lays back against the cushioned headboard, spread out for Magnus. 

Alec isn't too much a fan of magic in the bedroom, always saying he doesn't need parlor tricks to be with Magnus, but tonight Magnus preps him and stretches him magically while keeping both hands moving on the dome of Alec's stomach, which is tight and aching.

Afterwards Alec lays on his side to give his stomach some room to breathe, and Magnus cuddles up behind him and traces the sweet swell of his tummy where it's starting to slope toward the mattress. 

***

Lorenzo stops by in person to invite all three of them to his New Year's Eve party. Magnus is rolling his eyes the second Lorenzo is out the door, but is also already planning what to wear so it looks like the Bane-Lightwoods will be in attendance. 

Alec isn't a huge fan of parties. Any event without a written agenda isn't necessarily his strong suit. Plus, Warlock parties are always abuzz with centuries-old gossip and even though Magnus happily gives him the run-down every time, keeping the names and dates straight is just as hard as history class. 

It's hard not to trail Magnus at first, as he begins to make his rounds. It's like he knows every single person in the room. Come to think of it, he might. 

Every time they engage with a new person Magnus says, “This is my husband, Alec, and our friend, Jace.”

Alec will never get tired of hearing those words, but he's getting a little tired of hearing gossip about people he doesn't even know. 

He and Jace excuse themselves. Historically, Lorenzo's focus as a host leans more toward serving enough cocktails to fill an Olympic sized swimming pool, rather than serving food.

They stumble upon what looks to be Lorenzo's smoking room, all covered in dark wood and red leather with a huge wood burning fireplace, and it seems to be the only place he's serving beer at the whole party. 

He grabs two, uncaps one to hand over to Jace, and they settle in on a couch. 

“Pizza?” Alec asks, and Jace shakes his head. Ever since Magnus portaled them to a shop in Omaha that the Warlock community claims serves the best pizza, Jace has been entirely uninterested in grabbing a slice from any joint in the city.

“Thai Express?” Jace says but Magnus took them to Pattaya like three days ago for dinner, and Magnus is likely to just portal them back to Thailand if they ask for Thai food. 

Figuring out what to eat after one of Lorenzo's parties is a cherished pastime, and Alec is delighted to share it with Jace. Alec is just kind of delighted Jace is here with him in general. It's not that he doesn't appreciate the opportunity to learn more about Magnus's warlock friends, it's just that Lorenzo sucks so bad.

From the doorway, Underhill’s voice startles them, “I’m glad you guys found the beers,” when he's close enough he shakes both of their hands, “Renzo wasn't going to put any out tonight.”

Alec schools his face into a polite expression and does not visibly gag at the nickname. But Jace, effortlessly social, just jumps right in and starts grilling Underhill about the trainees he took over from Jace when Jace transferred. 

He asks Underhill if this one has improved his hand-to-hand blocking and if that one is still hesitating before they strike and Alec isn't sure how Jace manages to keep all of this information straight, especially since he's knee-deep in training their strike team back in Alicante. 

But Jace can talk about combat stances at length if no one stops him and it looks like Underhill isn't going to. Alec settles in beside Jace on the leather couch, keeping half an ear on their conversation but mostly just drinking his beer and watching the fire. 

He tunes back in when the conversation turns to the team Jace is training in Idris. Some of the information is confidential, but Jace isn't always one to concern himself with memos and dossiers so Alec prepares to run interference. 

But Jace just talks about how it's hard to teach a bunch of well-to-do kids from Alicante to fight dirty. 

There's pride in Jace's voice - his crew has come a long way already - but it makes Alec's heart overflow with warmth to hear Jace talk about his life with them so happily. 

After a while Underhill stands. “I should find Lorenzo,” he says. “It was great to see both of you.” After a moment's hesitation, he adds, “It looks like Idris really suits you guys.”

Alec’s cheeks heat, and he doesn't try to stop the flush of embarrassed pride from being felt through their bond once he sees the small smile on Jace's face. 

Underhill is out of the room for less than ten seconds when Jace turns to him and says “Empanadas.”

Oh hell yes. “From that place on 9th Ave?” Alec asks, even though there is only one acceptable answer. 

They barely find Magnus in time for Alec to snatch a quick kiss at midnight, but they lose sight of him briefly after that. They find him again in spirited debate over the magical uses of vampire dust, but he's pulled away easily enough once Jace reminds him that they haven't eaten. 

It's late enough by the time they leave that Magnus portals them all home and conjures a couple takeout containers of empanadas on the coffee table. As usual, there's a lot, even where Jace and Alec are concerned. Magnus's go-to line on the subject is, “I’d hate to see growing boys go hungry,” which usually earns a blush from Alec and an eye roll from Jace. 

The three of them settle in on the couch, Alec and Jace grabbing hot empanadas right out of the containers while Magnus updates them on the lives of people they don't actually know. 

The High Warlock of some obscure region in the tropics has been raising the dead, and someone else was discovered to be having a 300-year written affair with another Warlock. 

“And he signed all of them, ‘faithfully yours,’” Magnus laughs, almost spilling his martini.

There's a fond smile on Jace's face as he excuses himself for bed, but not before he grabs a couple more empanadas. 

Alec considers bringing the containers to bed with them, has only had around two dozen little fried pockets, but Magnus follows his gaze to the coffee table and smirks, “I can conjure a lot more where that came from in our bedroom, dear.”

Magnus always gets pretty sloshed around his warlock friends, it's Alec's favorite part of going to those parties. 

They fall into bed and Magnus has his hands everywhere, on his face and threaded through his hair, grabbing at his sides and stomach. 

It's not until afterwards when they're tangled up together in bed that Magnus says, “So are you ever going to talk to me about Jace?”

Alec's blood runs cold. How did Magnus find out? “I’m sorry,” he starts, and obviously his relationship with Magus is going to reach some kind of eventual end but this? Over Jace? 

“Magnus, I am so sorry-” Alec continues but Magnus cuts him off with a sush. 

“Alexander, it's okay.” Magnus reaches for Alec's hands, grabs them tightly, “I’m not mad at you. I was trying to give you time to come around, but…”

Alec looks at Magnus, perplexed. Come around to what? He's practically been cheating on Magnus in his brain after he promised Magnus he wasn't in love with Jace.

“Come around to what?” He finally asks, unable to keep his eyebrows from knitting together. 

Magnus runs a hand over Alec's forehead, smooths out the lines there, and says, “To come around to your own feelings, Alec. To tell yourself the truth so you could finally tell me.”

Jace. 

“You knew?” Alec asks, and he feels incredibly foolish. He knows better than to ask a question he doesn't know the answer to, but he has no footing, no idea how to navigate towards the things that he wants. 

“I think I saw it coming a mile away,” Magnus says with a playful little smile, “The two of you have been joined at the hip since he moved in.”

Magnus gives Alec's plush hip a friendly squeeze for emphasis and presses on, “I think we should talk to Jace about adding him to our relationship.”

Alec's head spins. Being married to Magnus is the best thing that's ever happened to him. He's nervous to rock the boat, but their relationship has survived a move to Idris and a near apocalypse. 

“Not just sex stuff, right?” Alec asks, and flushes all the way down his soft chest. 

“If that's what you want, we could do that,” Magnus says, “But I was thinking we could ask Jace to be our boyfriend. Or at least go on a date with us, to start.”

Alec wants to agree but it makes him nervous that it's this easy to have everything he's ever wanted. 

So Alec asks the one question that's been nagging at him this whole time: “What happened to ‘one soul at a time’?”

Magnus smiles, squirms even closer to Alec in bed, and says, “That's still true, sweetheart. Are you two not one soul?”

Which is incredible. Magnus not only loves him but loves all of him, every bit of him, loves Jace. 

“We can't just-” Alec starts weakly but Magnus makes that pouty frowny face again and Alec's weak to it, weak to Magnus. Weak to the idea of Magnus and more. 

And suddenly their bed feels too big and too cold and he wants to run down the hall and drag Jace in here right now. 

“Let's take him on a date,” Alec says finally, and settles into bed as Magnus rubs a hand back and forth over his midsection, listing all the places they'll have to bring Jace. 

***

Jace agrees to dinner before they tell him it's a date, for the sake of getting it on everyone's busy schedules. They don't even have an evening free together until Friday. 

Friday morning over the remnants of pancakes and waffles, Magnus looks at Alec before saying, “So Alec and I were wondering if you might want to go on a date with us tonight.”

“Take some time to think about it, you don't have to answer right away,” Alec speaks up immediately, feeling streaks of surprise and adrenaline swimming through their bond. “It's just that Magnus and I were talking…”

Magnus reaches over the table to grab Jace's free hand, “We like you, Jace.”

Jace looks surprised, and he looks at Magnus and then Alec before he says, “You want me to think about it?”

A lump forms in Alec's throat as he says, “Yes.” and then regrets it, instantly needs to know what Jace wants. 

Work drags. He has a handful of contract revision proposals to draft, and a couple of event requests to sign off on but he can't focus on any of it. He’s in the middle of checking his calendar for the seventeenth time to see if the Accords Hall is already booked in May when a text comes through, his phone buzzing cheerily on his desk.

It’s a text to him and Magnus that just says, “It’s a date” and Alec feels the tight panic in his chest settle as butterflies descend into his stomach. 

He and Magnus have a date with Jace. He’s not sure what to wear but knows better than to let Magus dress him. He throws himself into his paperwork and is done at quarter of, is left to anxiously pace his office and swipe around the apps menu on his phone.

Jace lets himself into the office a few minutes before five, and Alec’s stomach flip flops when he sees him. When they portal through to the apartment Magnus is already there. He’d dressed in a ruffled shirt unbuttoned all the way down to his waist and has glittery blue eyeliner smudged around his eyes.

“Get ready, boys,” Magnus says when they step into the apartment, giving a flourishing little arm movement, “Our dinner awaits.”

Alec changes into his favorite black pants and favorite button-down. The bottom curve of his stomach pushes lightly against his waistband. He can't fight back a smile as he looks in the mirror. He looks pretty big but that doesn't stop him from looking great, from looking so relaxed and confident. 

Magnus and Jace are already in the living room when Alec makes it back out there, and they follow Magnus through a portal. It's warm where they are, and the air smells salty and here on a terrace looking the sea there's a table loaded with a variety of different dishes. 

They're in Santorini. Magnus has taken him here a few times, and he watches Jace take in the sunset reflected over the ocean. The sunlight bounces off the glassware on the table, and candles flicker on the table. It's spellbinding, and Alec finds himself transfixed. He feels it coming from Jace too, warm and steady joy. 

“Wine?” Magnus asks as soon as they sit down, and he pours before they answer. Alec is happy to have anything to do with his hands and grabs for his full glass. 

Somehow he's starting to get a little nervous. Alec tries to stifle the thought, to stop the spiral, but what if this doesn't work out? Just because he wanted to be selfish and take more than he should. 

He's not really listening to Magnus when he rattles off the names of all of the dishes on the table, but still manages some mild alarm at how many different things there are. 

He lets Magnus fill his plate, barely registers Jace watching with interest. 

After a fortifying gulp of wine, he tunes back into the conversation to hear Magnus saying, “-and she wanted another mermaid antivenom potion.”

Jace's eyebrows raise and after swallowing what looked like a leafy ricey cylinder, Jace says, “Where is she finding all of these mermaids?”

“And what is she doing to piss them off so badly?” Magnus counters and as they laugh something in Alec's chest eases. 

They know how to do this. They've been doing it all along. 

He looks at his plate and wishes he had paid more attention to the explanations. He tries the rice cylinder Jace had and he likes it. It's soft and warm, and the kind of thing he could eat one million of. 

There are flaky triangles with spinach inside that he likes even more, and a pile of cooked meat that he thinks might be lamb. 

Everything is amazing. He tells Magnus that, who basks in the praise as usual. As soon as his plate is clear Magnus scoops it up and when he deposits it back in front of Alec it's just as full as the last time but with all different foods, red and green fritters and fried golden rings and yellow goop which he thinks might be fava beans. Alec goes in for the fava beans first and watches Magnus eye up Jace's empty plate, clearly gauging whether or not he’ll be filling Jace's as well. 

Something deep inside of Alec bends naturally to Magnus, has always been able and willing to let Magnus call the shots when he wants to. Alec has been in charge of basically everything for basically his entire life, it's nothing short of a blessing every time Magnus takes over. 

Jace slides his plate over, and Magnus grins. He passes it back practically overflowing and tries to hide his leering behind his wine glass. 

Alec works his way through everything, starting to fill up. When he watches Jace he's so certain about what Magnus sees in all of this. 

Jace looks so good, glowing in the last rays of the sun. He looks so sweet, so soft and rounded around the edges. His jacket's hanging on the back of his chair and seated his stomach sits on the tippy tops of his thighs, stretching his henley taut. 

Alec doesn't have to draw his eyes away, doesn't have to worry about who’s watching him. He let's his eyes roam over Jace's body as he realizes he might get to touch that body tonight. 

Jace’s head snaps toward him when he feels the rush of arousal that runs through Alec. “Magnus, do you think you could help me out again?” Jace asks and Magnus looks unabashed as he piles Jace's plate a little higher than the last time. 

Magnus fills Alec's plate again and it's easy enough to keep eating because its potentially the only thing keeping his hands off of Jace right now. 

Alec's not sure how Magnus resists the temptation to constantly touch either of them, but currently he's sitting across the table watching them both with dark eyes. 

Every time he looks at Jace or Magnus the want running through his veins intensifies and every time that happens Jace smirks and eats a little faster, forever fucking egging Alec on. 

He focuses on his plate despite the increasing fullness starting to creep over him. Alec's going to eat everything Magnus gave him. 

And he does, but he's absolutely stuffed by the time he manages it. Jace is too, Alec can feel it, and even see it in the roundness of his tummy. 

Magnus is clearing the table with a wave of his hand and opening a portal with the other. “Dessert tonight will be served at the top of - ” 

Jace groans at the same time as Alec says, “Mag, I really need to be horizontal right now.”

This does not deter Magnus. He closes the portal, opens a new one and says, “Dessert tonight will be served at home.”

Alec's not surprised when the portal deposits them all directly into their bedroom, but he's a little surprised to see every flat surface lined with candles and the bed scattered with flower petals. When does Magnus find the time?

Magnus starts to conjure glasses and champagne bottles and then some kind of tower of little pastries, all wrapped up in golden wispy fibers. 

Alec feels Jace come closer to him before he hears him speaking quietly beside him, “So all the food really is a thing for you guys, huh?”

Alec feels himself blush furiously and stammers through a non-answer because honestly it's a thing for him just as much as it's a thing for Magnus and watching Jace soften up under the care has been as much of a thing as any of it. 

“Are you saying it's not a thing for you too, Jace?” Magnus asks as he sweeps over to plant glasses of champagne in their hands and steers them both toward the bed. 

Alec watches as Jace eases himself onto the bed so as not to jostle his stomach or spill his drink, and when he settles he places his free hand on the swell of his stomach. He looks stunning, Alec is literally stunned. It's not until Magnus places a gentle hand on his arm that he remembers he's supposed to be climbing into bed along with Jace. 

He's still very full, but from here he can smell the sugary sweetness of the croquembouche and is confident he can find some room. 

Magnus looks like he shares that same confidence, sitting cross-legged on the bed between them looking like the cat that got the cream. 

With a wave of his hand some of the cream puffs on the tower levitate over to them and land on a plate waiting on the bed. 

They're amazing. They're light as air and the cream inside is cold and sweet. Suddenly the dozen half dozen or so Magnus brought over does seem like enough and Alec flicks eyes over where the tower is standing to make sure there's more. 

In the process he catches sight of Jace, and can't contain the surge of joy that runs through him at the sight of his parabatai in his bed, full but still eating. 

Magnus lays a proprietary hand on Alec's stomach, rubbing lightly where's he's so full and tender, and Alec arches up into the touch automatically. 

Then Magnus looks to Jace for permission to do the same. When Jace's gaze falls to Alec's stomach Magnus gives the soft chub there a little squeeze. 

Jace nods, and his eyes slide shut when Magnus slides his palm across the dome of his stomach where it sits just a little bit in his lap. 

They let Magnus hand them puff after puff, and the stuffed contentedness they're passing back and forth between their bond is being ratcheted up and up towards arousal. 

Alec is breathing a little heavy by the time he looks over and sees they finished the croquembouche, from being so full and being so turned on. 

It's almost a struggle to get his clothes off but as soon as he does he has Magnus's hands all over him, and Jace’s. He returns the favor, running hands over Magnus's smooth muscle and grabbing soft handfuls of Jace's tummy and chest. 

He's a little worried logistically about what they're going to do with Jace, with a third, but in the end it feels like Jace should have been them all along. 

He watches Jace kiss Magnus with the same confidence he does everything else in his life, like there's nowhere he should be besides right here. 

When they're done Jace curls up with them in the bed, and Alec wraps himself around Jace. Magnus presses himself up against Alec's back and throws his arm over the two of them, fingertips brushing the side of Jace’s stomach.  
And in the morning Magnus portals them to the top of the Eiffel Tower for crepes. 

***

There are only a few other people in the Hunter’s Moon when they walk in, scattered around the booths and pool tables. 

Isabelle and Simon are easy enough to spot, and Alec makes his way over to their table while Jace detours to the bar to put in their drink order. 

Simon’s already nursing a pint of blood, and Izzy has a glass of something clear sweating at her right elbow that she doesn't seem to have touched. 

“Magnus is finishing up with a client, he’ll be here soon.” Alec says as he slides into the booth. 

Jace slides in soon after him and says, “They're gonna bring everything over in a minute,” which is a solid indicator he ordered too much to carry. 

They all agree they're not going to tell anyone about adding Jace to their relationship yet, but largely because the only thing that's really changed since hooking up are their sleeping arrangements. 

But with the way Isabelle is looking back and forth between them, it looks like she already got the memo. 

The bartender sets down a couple of beers and baskets of fries, and Isabelle slips in another order of blood for Simon. 

Jace trains every day with his cadets, and even though he's more or less caught up to Alec in terms of weight, he's all soft bulky muscles and rounded tummy. And Alec still trains, even though he's still steadily softening all over with his stomach steadily creeping forward. 

But Simon is starting to look nothing short of round and even though Isabelle has never told anyone what she and Simon get up to, Alec knows. He can see it on his sister's face. 

Which is likely how Isabelle knows about the three of them. Alec doesn't think he's ever been happier and he doesn't even bother to hide it. 

So she probably sees the matching thrilled expressions on both of them when Magnus walks in the bar. 

Jace stands to let Magnus slip into the booth, and slides in on the other side of him. 

Magnus orders a martini and a second round of fries for his boys, and briefs them all about the latest scandals in the Warlock world.

Magnus has been talking about grand plans for dinner after this, but Alec dutifully eats his second basket of fries anyways. They're really good fries, crispy on the outside and the insides are still tender and soft. 

It's not until a balled up napkin hits him in the face that Alec realizes he's been absolutely zoned out for like two whole minutes. 

He glares at Izzy. “What?”

“I was asking about Underhill’s wedding,” she says with a roll of her eyes. “Are you officiating?”

Officiating weddings is simultaneously Alec's favorite and least favorite duty as the Inquisitor. On one hand, he's got his lines memorized and will never turn his nose up at a slice of cake. But on the other hand, ever since his own wedding Alec cannot help but get misty during any and all nuptials. 

“The silent brothers are taking care of the ceremony,” Alec says and ignores it when Jace and Izzy snicker at him, those jerks. 

So what if he cried a lot during Helen and Aline’s wedding?

With a glance at his pocket watch, Magnus speaks up, “We might have to be on our way soon. Dinner reservations.” They start locating jackets and scarves within their booth and Magnus says, “Would you like to join us for dinner? I can change the reservation.”

Izzy's been Head of Institute long enough that her expression remains neutral even though there's warmth and amusement in her voice when she says, “We wouldn't want to intrude.”

“My dearest Isabelle, your company could never be anything of the sort,” Magnus tells her, but lets her decline the second offer and ushers them both out of the door into the chilly street. 

***

It's late by the time they make it through the portal back to the living room. It's dark in the apartment until Magnus brings the lights up with a wave of his hand. 

The wedding had been huge, around two hundred people, on a private beach in Majorca, and Alec is 100% happy to be home.

“If I recall correctly,” Jace says as he shrugs out of his suit jacket and starts to loosen his tie, “there was some discussion of pizza once we got home?”

And it's not that there was no food at Lorenzo's wedding, it's just tapas and cake is fine for Dinner Part One, but Dinner Part Two demands actual sustenance. 

“The usual?” Magnus asks. With a snap, two pizza boxes appear on the coffee table before them. 

Jace practically gasps, “It's, like, three am in Nebraska. How is Mama Betty's still open?” 

“You two have been talking about pizza for hours. I called ahead.” Magnus says and Jace looks supremely pleased, opening and closing the pizza boxes until he finds the pepperoni. 

Magnus settles back in the corner of the couch and Jace tucks himself up against him. Alec grabs his own pizza, black olive, and leans against the other side of the couch. 

He slips his toes under Jace's thigh as he pulls a melty slice out of his box. “Lorenzo looked happy for once,” Alec says. 

“Oh, instead of looking fiendishly delighted?” Magnus asks. 

Lorenzo looked nothing short of overjoyed that someone chose him to be their forever, and Alec can't help but wonder where the disconnect between being all powerful and having low self worth lies. 

“It's a good thing Madzie likes being a flower girl,” Jace says, “because she might have a busy season coming up.”

Which, based on everything they saw tonight, will probably be true. 

Max had led a charge of underage shadowhunters trying to pilfer beers from the bar and his mother, making slow circles around the dancefloor in Luke’s arms, either didn't notice or care. 

“Trade a slice?” Alec asks, and flops back down to his side of the couch after they make the exchange. 

“Isn't there a thing going on tomorrow?” Magus asks. 

“There's that ribbon cutting on the addition to the Accords Hall at noon,” Alec says, “You guys don't have to come to that, though.”

Jace and Magnus make matching affronted noises. “We’ll be there,” Magnus says.

“Of course we’re coming,” Jace says and then says, “But noon is late enough to get a solid breakfast in… any thoughts?” 

“French toast?” Magnus suggests, “Pancakes? You liked those beignets we had last week, right?”

“Pancakes would be good,” Alec says. He's not looking to portal all over the world for breakfast tomorrow. Pancakes have a 50/50 chance of being served in bed and that's the exact kind of energy he's looking for. 

Once the pizzas are gone Alec lets himself be dragged off the couch, and off to bed. 

They fall into the bed in a pile, Jace already wrapping himself in most of the blankets and Magnus already squirming to secure cuddles.

Usually Alec is awake for a while after everyone else falls asleep, but tonight he drifts off right away, sandwiched between his boys.

**Author's Note:**

> Brought to you by Alec Lightwood Deserves Only The Nicest Things, Inc., in partnership with Jace Was Not Even Going To Be In This At All Originally But He Kept Showing Up And Here We Are Companies, Ltd.
> 
> I can also be found on [Tumblr](https://sixflagstexas.tumblr.com)


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